Remembering Resistance

Asa Eger is the grandson of Eugenia and László Szamosi and a Professor of the Islamic World at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Focusing on the intersection of archaeology and history he specializes in Anatolia and Syria-Palestine from the Byzantine period through to the twelfth century. His recent publications include; The Archaeology of Medieval Islamic Frontiers (University Press of Colorado, 2019) and Antioch: A History (Routledge, 2021).

“This is an extraordinary document [which] adds significantly to our knowledge of resistance in Budapest during the Holocaust. It is also a story of amazing audacity in the face of fascist violence.” • Barbara Epstein, University of California, Santa Cruz

• List of Illustrations and DocumentsEditors’ NotePreface: The Life and Legacy of My GrandparentsAsa EgerAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: Shared Experiences, Divided Memories: Diplomats and Jewish Rescuers in Budapest, 1944–1945Kinga Frojimovics and Éva KovácsPart I: The Hungary Years, 1942–1949Chapter 1. Budapest, 1944–1945: A Memoir by László SzamosiChapter 2. Documents during the War, 1942–1945Chapter 3. The Safe Houses of Budapest Where the Szamosis LivedChapter 4. Documents after the War, 1945–1949Chapter 5. Houses after the War, 1944–1949Part II: The Komoly Years, 1950s to 1980sChapter 6. Komoly Memorial Lecture at Bet Hahalutzot, Haifa (1952)Chapter 7. The Yad Vashem Correspondence, Part One (1958)Chapter 8. Komoly Memorial Lecture at Beitenu, Haifa (1975)Part III: The Wallenberg Years, 1981–1986Chapter 9. László Szamosi and John Bierman’s Righteous Gentile (1981, 1982)Chapter 10. Szamosi as a Promoter for Wallenberg’s Rise to Fame (1981–1986)Chapter 11. Organizing the First World Congress on Hungarian Jews (1982–1984)Chapter 12. Forty Years After… László Szamosi’s Speech in Beer Sheva (1984)Chapter 13. Honoring László Szamosi upon His Death (1986)Part IV: The Perlasca Years, Part One: 1986–1992Chapter 14. The Yad Vashem Correspondence, Part Two (1989–1990)Chapter 15. The World-Famous “Perlasca Circus” by Eugenia SzamosiChapter 16. The Oral History of Eugenia Szamosi, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Correspondence, Part One (1990)Chapter 17. Bözsi’s Last Battle: Fighting Back with the MediaPart V: The Perlasca Years, Part Two: 1998–2023Chapter 18. The Temple Emanu-El Panel (1998)Chapter 19. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Correspondence, Part Two (2013–2015) and Arcadi Espada’s L’autentica impostura (2013–2021)EpilogueAppendix I: List of Jews Rescued with Szamosi’s InvolvementAppendix II: Szamosi Family TreeIndex